Finland Times

By the middle of December, 2,700 reported cases of home break-ins were registered, posting a rise of almost 500 than the number of cases reported in 2013.

According to the police, the rate of break-ins gathered pace towards the end of the year. Between November and December, 340 incidents of residential burglaries were reported.

The police have advised the public to be vigilant during the festive season, since there is a tendency of cases of burglaries picking up in this period.

“Home burglars unfortunately are not on holiday, at least not at the same time when other people are on holiday,” remarked Chief Inspector Kimmo Hyvärinen from the Eastern Uusimaa Police Department.

An effective way to keep burglars’ interest at bay is to maintain an image that the house is occupied even during the festive season. Neighbours could be asked to empty the mail box and help with snow-clearing.

The police also advised people not to reveal their holiday plans in the social media. Burglaries can also be thwarted by improving lighting and acquisition of security lock, they said.

The police have investigated a number of cases of break-ins in the past year which involved foreign professional criminals.

The Southwest Finland Police Department conducted preliminary investigations in over 60 incidents in which the prime suspect is a Lithuanian man.

The typical targets of the foreign criminals are detached houses.